September 17 2016 Northampton, England
We arrived last night and made our way via taxi to the Hilton in Northampton. We rented a car. Enterprise came to the hotel to pick us up. Enterprise is at the Northampton Train Station. Blaine had the pleasure of driving on the wrong side of the road, with the steering on the wrong side. Blaine did a GREAT job of finding our way pretty easily with GPS to St. Andrews Church in Harlestone. He had left a message for the church rector, but got no response. Unfortunately, the church was not open when we arrived, but we enjoyed walking around exploring the outside beauty of this church built in the 1500's. There are graves surrounding the church, but we didn't find the family names there. Blaine's research indicates that his ancestors (5 generations) are actually buried inside the church. Luckily, there was a sign that there will be a tea held tomorrow from 2-5pm. We feel so fortunate! We are leaving Monday, so we know what our Sunday plans will be :-)
The rest of our day was free, so we decided to drive the 4 miles to Althorp, the home of Princess Di before she married Prince Charles. Again, quite luckily, it was open to visitors today! It is a beautiful estate owned by the Spencer family. We took a very interesting tour of the home and grounds. The home is still a private residence. The collection of artwork and antiquities is quite amazing. At the end of our tour, our guide told us that the 9th Earl of Spencer (Princess Di's brother) was going to be in the gift shop for 15 minutes for some book signing. So, of course, we finished the home tour and went to the gift shop. Blaine bought his book and then had a nice conversation with the Earl. He seemed to be a very nice man. He is quite a bit grayer than I remember when he gave that eloquent speech after his sister's death (aren't we all?). Blaine had a chance to tell the Earl about his ancestry, and the Earl asked if there was any family connection. Blaine has traced his ancestors back to the mid-1400's to this area. And the Spencer family acquired Althorp in 1508. So, it seems quite possible that their families at least knew each other as neighbors. After the excitement of meeting the Earl, we did a self-tour of the beautiful grounds. This is where Princess Di is buried, and there is a wonderful memorial to her on the lake there. In the stable area there are also many interesting exhibits, the most touching being the one dedicated to Princess Di. It contains condolence books from around the world.
We had lunch at the Fox & Hounds, which is right near St. Andrews Church. The building appears to be from the same era (1500's or 1600's), and they have done a great job creating a very warm atmosphere inside. I needed a warm atmosphere since I was freezing. Today was the first day that the weather turned cold. We both wore coats, but I was cold to the bones! Blaine had another fantastic roasted lamb dish. Great food again! Who said English food was not good?
